


In The Settling Dust (Yeehaw, Bang Bang Part III)

by TheWritingFox



Series: Yeehaw, Bang Bang [9]
Category: Steam Powered Giraffe
Genre: Aftermath of Violence, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Eventual Fluff, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Other, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Rescue
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-12
Updated: 2020-12-22
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:08:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,676
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28032156
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheWritingFox/pseuds/TheWritingFox
Summary: All seems dire and emotions are high. With one of their own injured, the Walter robots hurry home.
Relationships: The Spine/Original Female Character
Series: Yeehaw, Bang Bang [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1987078
Comments: 19
Kudos: 7





	1. Running Out Of Time

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to part 3 of the story! Thanks for sticking around and reading this far!

All seemed dire as the Walter bots slide down into the gulley. When they lost track of Sparky, the subsequent lightning show was like a beacon drawing them to her location. 

The copper bot lies motionless on the ground, parts of her clothes scorched black from the lightning. Gray smoke lightly drifts from her ears and mouth. The Spine's boiler almost stops when he sees her. Fearing the worst, he slides to his knees next to her in the dirt and scoops the little bot up, cradling her to his chest.

"Darlin', please open your eyes, c'mon", he pleads in a thick voice and gently shakes her then softly taps her cheek with his fingers, venting steam in distress as Sparky remains limp in his arms. 

Spine's fedora conceals his expression as he bows his head with closed eyes, trying to stop the oil tears before they fell and calm himself. He tries to listen for the hum of electricity in Sparky's body, a sign she was still alive. 

If they were too late, he would never forgive himself...

A somber silence fell over the others as they looked on helplessly, praying that the smaller robot would show some sign of life. Rex takes off his hat and swallows the lump in his throat. Sometimes heroes were too late. 

Rabbit's hands were covering her mouth as black oil tears slicked down her cheeks. Zer0 was silent as he bowed his head, and put a comforting hand on her and Hatchworth's shoulders.

The Spine feels a hand touch his cheek and gently brush away an escaped oil tear. His eyes shoot open to see Sparky looking up at him with tired blue optics.

"It's okay Spine, please don't cry", she tells him in a soft distorted voice. 

"Sparky", he breathes in relief and presses a kiss to her hot forehead. "Don't scare me like that again." His optics shine in joy as he looks over her features, brushing some of her red hair, made a little frizzy by the lightning, away from her face. 

A murmur of relief passed through the group as Sparky stirred in The Spine's arms. They weren't out of the woods yet, that was for certain.

Hatchworth was trying to calm himself down and focus on producing a portal back to the lab at Walter Manor. The earlier altercation with Becile and his boys combined with Sparky's near death left him frazzled and dealing with memories from the war he would sooner forget. He needed to focus, and fast, for Sparky's sake.

Sparky tries to smile at Spine, but an expression of pain crosses her features as she feels her circuits and fuses burn from the lack of coolant running through her system. Pained trembles wrack her body. 

"I'm s-sorry, he m-made me do it, I d-didn't want to... it h-hurts, Spine", she whimpers and tries to curl closer to him. Her system was heated up to unsafe levels, taxing her already damaged inner workings. She was so tired, but the pain kept her somewhat alert.

"Shhh, I know, I'm so sorry darlin'. This is not your fault. Everything will be alright", he soothes then looks up and addresses his smallest brother calmly. "Hatchworth. We need a portal."

His easy tone was for Sparky's benefit, he didn't want to frighten her more. The silver bot's anxiety was evident by how much steam was puffing from his neck vents in small clouds.

The Spine could feel the alarming amount of heat radiating off Sparky even through his clothes as he stood up with the smaller bot carefully held in his arms. 

Hatchworth nods and vents steam. "I am trying, The Spine. Just one more moment," he replies shakily, holding his damaged shoulder. Rabbit and Zer0 were doing their best to calm their brother. 

Spine turns to look at Rex. "I trust you can keep Steve and Camille safe until Hatchy can produce another portal?"

"On my word as the finest marksman, you bet." Rex replies and gazes worriedly at Sparky when she makes a small distorted sound of pain. 

"Sp-Spine...I'm s-scared...everything h-hurts..." Sparky's voice cracks and distorts as she whispers. Her optics were bleary and unfocused as she grips The Spine's jacket fearfully with one hand.

"It's going to be okay. Hatchy's working on a portal to take us home and you'll be alright, I promise." The taller robot gently holds her closer as he murmurs in her ear. "Just stay online for me, darlin'", he adds when he notices Sparky's optics starting to flutter shut. She nods shakily and grips his jacket again.

"I wish I could do more for y'all." Rex shakes his head sadly just as a Blue Matter portal finally appears behind Spine. 

"You've done more than enough. Thank you Rex." The Spine replies sincerely before he quickly strides over to the portal, careful not to jar Sparky around.

Rabbit pats Hatchworth on his good shoulder before she turns to Spine as he approached, glancing at Sparky in his arms and worrying her lip. 

"Hatchy and I w-w-will go back to town and get Steve and Camille and meet ya back home" she says.

As much as Spine disliked the idea of leaving others behind, there was no other choice. He looks down at Sparky as she mumbled incoherently into his jacket, fighting her system to stay awake and online.

"Be safe," he nods to Rabbit and carefully readjusts his grip on Sparky. "C'mon Zer0, I'll need help when we get to the lab." 

Zer0 had been unnaturally quiet and wringing his hands in worry until Spine called his name and he perked up and walks with his brother to the portal. He could see how scared the copper bot was in his brother's arms. 

"Don't worry Sparky, it's gonna be okay!" The youngest Walter bot tried his best to keep his voice free of worry as he comforted Sparky. 

With those words, the robots walk through the swirling blue portal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will be fluff, I promise! 😅


	2. Full Circle

The automatons enter the portal and a moment later step out in the lab, the sound of BEEBOP alerting the other Manor residents of their arrival meets their ears. Zer0 rushes to clear off a table for The Spine to deposit a semi conscious Sparky on to. Several tools clatter to the floor with a metallic crash in his haste. 

"No, Spine! Don't let him hurt me!" Sparky had flinched away from the sound as it brought to mind what had transpired in the mine. Her hazy optics shot open and became wide with fear as she holds on to him tighter, burying her face into the crook of his neck. 

She didn't know where she was...It broke Spine's and Zer0's heart to see her react that way.

"We're at the Manor, Sparky, no one is going to harm you. I promise." Spine murmurs gently in her ear. 

Sparky nods weakly in response and lays her head against his chest, blinking slowly as her optics glow dimly. She gives a small cough of gray smoke followed by a pained sound.

Spine could feel an irregular electrical thrum coming from her system as he moves her on to the table in a sitting position, keeping a hand on her shoulder to steady her when she wobbled. Sparky reaches up and lightly places her own hand on top of his as Zer0 rubs her back gently to comfort her when he noticed the copper bot trembling.

A moment later, Peter Walter the Sixth and Walter Worker Chelsea burst through the doorway "What happened?" The masked Walter desendant asks in alarm as he rushes to Sparky's side at the table.

"It's a long story." Spine shakes his head, quickly adding, "Sparky's coolant is empty and she's overheating. We need to scan her for traces of Green Matter as well."

"Green matter?" Six repeats in alarm and dashes to the other side of the lab, grabbing a small device from a cabinet before returning to the table and scanning Sparky with it.

The smaller robot flinches away when she sees the device, eyes glancing fearfully at it then to Six. "This will not hurt", he assures and continues his scan quickly. The device remains silent, nothing indicating the presence of Green Matter.

Chelsea looks around the lab in concern. "Where are the others? Are they alright?", she asks worriedly as she hurries around the lab to retrieve tools and an IV bag like pouch of coolant.

The Spine nods, still holding on to Sparky's hand and running his thumb soothingly over her knuckles. "Camille and Steve are fine, Rabbit and Hatchy are looking after them with Rex's help. They should be here within the hour."

The Walter Worker decided not to question who Rex was as she returns with the items. While Six hooks up the coolant bag to Sparky and tries to assess her damage, Chelsea checks on The Spine and Zer0.

Soon fresh coolant is coursing through Sparky's system as the copper bot looks off distantly at the floor, still trembling.

"Sparky, we're gonna have to turn you off to see the extent of your damage." Six tells her gently.

Sparky blinks and looks up at him. "O-Okay" she replies in a small fearful voice and grips Spine's hand. 

The silver automaton smiles at her and takes her other hand. "I'll be here when you wake up, I promise darlin'." 

Sparky's vision goes black as she's turned off for repairs and gently teeters forward against Spine's chest, her last hazy thought being relief that she was finally safe.


	3. I've Got You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We've finally got a little fluff in this chapter, 😅
> 
> Also I'm putting another warning for a brief mentions of PTSD and some robotic bodily harm.

**✴✴✴✴**

Sparky could feel her system coming back online slowly. Her hearing became operational first, then her sensation of touch. Someone was holding her left hand and something warm was resting against her right side. 

A few moments later her vision came online and she opens her eyes, blinking in the bright light. She makes a small noise of discomfort as her optics adjust then looks around. 

The copper bot was in the lab on a small bed, dressed in something like a hospital gown with wires connected to her in order to monitor her system. GG the giraffe was curled up next to her, purring slightly while in stasis, several stuffed animals were tucked around her and Sparky. The Spine was sitting in a chair at the bedside, holding her hand, his fedora slid over his eyes in stasis. 

Memories of what happened hit Sparky like a wave, making her tremble. The Jack's giggling echoes in her mind along with sound of Becile prying at her metal plating with various tools, then the man's laugh as he succeeds. She could still feel the pain as the Green Matter was introduced into her system. Gray tears spill silently down her cheeks as she sparks lightly from the ears, feeling crushed from under the sheer impact of emotions she felt fizzling through her circuits.

"Sp-ine", her voice warbles in fear as she patted his arm urgently. The Spine rouses a moment later, blinking in alarm at her tears. 

"Sparky? No, no, don't cry. I've got you, you're safe." Spine wraps his arms around her and gently pulls her protectively to his chest in a hug, mindful of the wires connected to her via the access panel on her lower back.

As Sparky's weight shifted on the bed closer to Spine, GG was tipped off the covers and landed with a surprised yelp on the floor. Peeking up over the bed, her big blue eyes light up in joy seeing Sparky.

"Sparky's awake! I'm gonna get everyone!" GG gallops off to tell everyone the good news, unaware that Sparky's monitor was connected to BEEBOP's network, any change was immediately sent to the Walter Worker's and Peter's phones.

"I-I felt everything he did...it hurt so much." Sparky cries into Spine's shirt as he holds her close and tries to soothe her. 

The Spine frowns, anger bubbling in him. That monster didn't even shut her down correctly before starting his experiments. He should've made that man pay...he pushes those dark thoughts away, now wasn't the time. Guilt choked his core as he looked down at Sparky trembling in his arms. 

"Oh, darlin', I'm so sorry. If I'd been there this wouldn't have happened," he tells her, deep voice filled with sorrow. "He won't ever hurt you again, I promise." He rubs her back soothingly as she hiccups tearfully.

"Everyone got hurt, I almost h-hurt you. I'm so s-sorry...how could I ever think that man was Otac?"

As more memories flood back to Sparky, her voice distorts worse on each word as she cries harder.

Glancing at the monitor she was connected to, Spine could see her system's levels spiking dangerously. A short out was imminent if she didn't calm down soon. 

"Sparky, look at me" he gently cups her cheek and looks her in the eyes. "Everyone is fine. You fought it and didn't hurt me. It was the Green Matter that made you think he was your creator. You are so strong, darlin'. You protected everyone when you ran away and shorted it out of your system." He lightly kisses her forehead and adds, "You need to calm down for me, alright darlin'? You're gonna short out."

"I'll t-try Spine....I'm sorry, I got your shirt all messy", she adds and sniffles. Spine looks down at his coolant stained shirt then at her, a chuckle rumbling warmly in his chest as he smiles softly and shakes his head.

"I don't care about the shirt, I care about you", he tells her gently and brushes the tears off her cheeks with his thumb. "I would personally ruin all my shirts if it meant you were happy. I would even let Rabbit draw a moustache on my face with a sharpie again if that'll make you laugh." 

"A handlebar moustache?" Sparky asked softly after a moment. She couldn't help the tiny smile that began to tug at her lips at the thought of that. 

"The biggest one she can draw, with bells tied to the ends." The Spine nods seriously, before smiling at her and stealing a subtle glance back at the monitor. Everything was slowly leveling out as Sparky giggled lightly at the mental image.

"That's my girl." Spine murmured to her with a smile and carefully hugs her. Sparky rests her head against his chest, closing her eyes in content for a few moments as the comforting sounds of his core and boiler relaxed her a bit more.

The rapid padding of slippered feet soon was heard as Peter slid to a stop in front of the bed, out of breath, his keyhole mask a little askew on his face.

"Sparky, you're awake! BEEBOP sent an alert to my phone. Chelsea and Camille will be here shortly. Are you okay?" Six asks in a rush as he tries to catch his breath.

"I think so." Sparky answers. "What time is it? I'm sorry if you were woken up."

"It's two in the morning, but I'm just happy you're awake. You were offline for a week." The Walter descendant replies as he checks the monitor and runs a quick diagnostic on Sparky's system using a tablet he picked up from the wheeled bedside table.

"A week? Is everyone ok? Rabbits arm and Hatchy's shoulder...oh my gosh, what about Steve?" Sparky rambles in alarm as she sits up in Spine's arms.

"Rabbit and Hatchworth were repaired, they're doing great. Steve is fine, his eye is still a bit bruised, but he only had a concussion. I put him on light duty for now." Peter assures her, a smile in his voice. "Can you stand please? I need to check your motor functions."

The Spine was a little hesitant to let go of Sparky, but with a short puff of steam, he helped her stand, ready to catch her if she wobbled during her tests. Aside from her battery needing to be fully charged, the damage had been relatively easy to fix. 

Some fuses had to be replaced and circuits repaired. Her motor functions needed to be fully recalibrated, so she was still going to be a little wobbly when she walked for the time being.

The Walter Workers, also clad in their pajamas, joined them a few moments later and helped out with the diagnostic. During the tests, The Spine fills Sparky in on what had happened after the rescue mission, based on what Rabbit and Hatchworth told him.

**✴✴✴✴**


	4. Home Is Where The Heart Is

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just to clarify, the first two paragraphs in italics is Rabbit and Hatchworth's perspective.The next two paragraphs in italics is following Rex's perspective of what happened next.

**✴✴✴✴**

_The portal closed behind Spine and Zer0 as they returned to the lab. Rex, Hatchy and Rabbit return to the mine to collect Hare and call Betsy for a ride back into town. Rex would return later with help to dig the out the mines entrance and check for survivors. They landed outside of town, Rabbit ran into town to bring back Steve and Camille. While she was gone, Rex tried to stabilize Hatchworth's shoulder, he ended up using one of his belts as a sling for the bronze automaton._

_R_ _abbit returned shortly with the two humans in tow. Steve leaned on her shoulder for support, still a bit wobbly and lightheaded. After saying their goodbyes and thanks, Rex invited them to come back some time so they can get to know each other under better circumstances, then looked on in amazement as Hatchy produced another blue matter portal. Rex tipped his white hat as the humans and automatons entered the swirling blue mass and disappeared a moment later._

**✴✴✴✴**

_After they left, Rex deposited Hare in the town's jail, then recruited local lawmen and civilian volunteers to dig out the mine's entrance. What they found inside surprised them. Becile and his Boys were no where to be seen. The makeshift lab was overturned in a hurry, it appeared only the bare minimal of equipment had been taken. Small dark splotches of oil and blood were splattered on the dusty path leading deeper into the mine. There must be a hidden way out of the mine._

_As the other lawmen followed the spots down the path, Rex hung back, something of interest had caught his eye. A small black metal box, much like a tiny safe, laid forgotten in the corner of the room. It was warm and Rex could feel a hum emitting from it as he held it in the palm of his gloved hand. He pockets it for further inspection later and catches up with the others. If Becile was hurt, finding medical help would be the Boys first priority. Returning for Hare might be their second. Rex would have a little trap waiting for them if they did._

**✴✴✴✴**

Sparky's motor function tests were going fine with just a few hiccups as she listened. She had stumbled a few times, but with Spine's steadying hand on her waist, she didn't fall. Just as she sat back down on the bed, the rest of the Walter automatons rush in to the lab, GG leading the charge.

"Sparky! I'm so g-gl-glad you're awake!" Rabbit exclaims.

Sparky rushes off the bed to hug Rabbit, forgetting in her excitment that her motor functions were still on the fritz. Her legs lock up and she topples forward into the larger automatons arms, who catches her easily and pulls Sparky into a tight hug, Hatchworth and Zer0 joining in. Rabbit sets the smaller robot back on the bed with a smile then wipes an oil tear from her eyes.

"I hope you can forgive me, Sparky. I never meant to put you in any danger", Hatchworth says and stands next to her. "Once again, my portals have caused harm." The bronze robot's moustache twitched sadly as he frowned and gazed at Sparky.

"Of course I can! Its not your fault Hatchy, none of us could've known Becile was going to be there." Sparky replies and pats his arm comfortingly. Hatchworth sighs steam in relief and smiles at her.

"I am very glad you're alright. The others and I have brought you something to brighten up your stay in the lab", he adds and reaches in his hatch, pulling out a small flower pot with large yellow dandelions blooming from the soil. 

"I recall that these were your favorite. They are only slightly irradiated with blue matter, the petals will never fall and it probably won't need watering", he explains and sets the pot down on a small rolling cart near the bed.

"Thank you! They're wonderful Hatchy." Sparky says and smiles when he ruffles her hair fondly then steps back, allowing Zer0 to show her the small fuzzy object in his hand.

"I found these little guys and this one reminded me of you!" Zer0 says and holds out his hand. A fuzzy, worm on a string was given to her, it's color very similar to Sparky's own copper tone.

The smaller robot giggled at the worm's googly eyes and thanked Zer0 as he wrapped her up in a warm hug. GG trundled up to the bedside next, she was holding a plushy brown bear in her mouth.

"Here! In case you need to cuddle something, since Spine's a jerk and won't let me stay, Romeo can keep you company. You can squeeze him and everything!" GG says, setting the bear down on the bed and nudging it over to Sparky with her nose. 

"I'm glad you're awake, everyone is so mean to me", the baby giraffe adds in a whisper as she wraps her springy limbs around Sparky in a hug, before dropping back to the floor and scooping up the remaining stuffed animals in her mouth, then galloping off, presumably back to bed.

"Alrighty everyone, it's late we should let Sparky get some rest", Chelsea suggests then turns to the smaller bot. "You'll need to stay here a little while longer so we can monitor you, okay Sparky?"

"Okay", Sparky nods tiredly, despite having been offline for a week and only moving around a little bit recently, she felt the need to go into stand by. "Thank you, everyone. I'm sorry about worrying you", she tells them as Spine helps her sit back in bed and pulls the covers over her lap. 

After the others give her another round of hugs, they file out of the room. Peter dims the lights in the lab a bit before he leaves and heads back to his room. He was relieved Sparky was alright. Since she had been in stand by, the atmosphere of the Manor had become tinged in a feeling of sadness and worry that hung over the residents like a grey cloud.

Not only would it have been terrible to lose a family member, the Walter descendant knew the other robots would've been inconsolable. Especially The Spine. He remembered the stubborn, whispered exchange between himself and the tall silver bot who refused to leave his post beside Sparky's bed in the days that followed her rescue.

It took some coaxing from Rabbit to finally convince her brother to leave the lab and spend an hour in The HOW to complete a full system diagnostic and recharge for a bit, with the promise that she and the others would stay in the lab with Sparky and inform him immediately if anything changed. 

Peter could now feel the Manor slowly returning to normal. He smiled softly under his mask and relaxed a little for the first time in a week.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We've got more fluff coming soon!


	5. No Place I'd Rather Be

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whooo, just one more chapter to go before this story ends. Thanks for sticking with me throughout this adventure, I hoped you enjoyed yourselves!

**✴✴✴✴**

The Spine sits back down in the chair next to her bed with a hiss of hydraulics and sighs, steam exiting his mouth as he sets his fedora aside to run a hand through his hair. "Peace and quiet", he chuckles softly.

"Were you and GG here the whole time?" Sparky asks as she holds Romeo the bear in her lap.

"Yes, I told her she could stay as long as she didn't bother you. I've never seen her that serious before, she kept bringing stuffed animals to tuck around you, saying they would help." Spine smiles at her. "Now that you're awake, no doubt GG will be back to her annoying self in no time."

Sparky giggles softly, blinking sleepily at Spine. The chair didn't look very comfy, she realized. "You don't have to stay Spine, I'm sure The HOW would be more comfortable for you. I'll be fine here", she says and pats his hand.

"There's no place I'd rather be right now, darlin'." Spine tells her, green optics glowing softly in the dim light. "That reminds me." 

He retrieves something from his pocket and holds it up for Sparky. It was the pendant from the fair.

"Oh, it's beautiful! Thank you Spine." Sparky ran her fingertip over the blue stone's smooth surface then lets him fasten it around her neck. The pendant fit perfectly, the stone laying on her chest where her heart would be.

"You're welcome. I bought it at the fair, the stone reminded me of your eyes", Spine tells her with a gentle smile. "You should rest", he adds when he sees her blink slowly at him with a tired smile on her face.

Sparky leans over and gives Spine a hug. "Thank you. For everything," she whispers. "I don't know what would've happened if..." she trails off not really wanting to voice that fear.

"Don't worry about it. You're safe now, that's all that matters." Spine murmurs and hugs her back before gently nudging her to lay down, tucking in the covers around her. 

"'Night, Spine." Sparky hums, feeling safe and warm. She was having a hard time keeping her optics open as she looked at him. 

Just before she drifted off to stand by mode, she felt a tender kiss be pressed to her forehead with a soft murmur.

"Goodnight Sparky. I love you." 

The Spine sits down and leans back in his chair, smiling softly at the peaceful look on the smaller robot's face. He couldn't be sure if Sparky heard that last part. A few moments later he dons his fedora again and slides it over his eyes. 

The chair wasn't the most comfortable, but he didn't care. He would be here for her, no matter what.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter I consider more of a bonus round of fluff, but I'm sure y'all won't mind?


	6. Safe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to the last chapter! It's been fun posting this story for y'all.
> 
> Fun fact, I had written this after I originally published the story, so this chapter never made it into the finished product. 
> 
> Technically the previous chapter was the "last" one. I consider this one more of a bonus round, lol
> 
> *Warning for mentions of PTSD and nightmares with a touch of robotic bodily harm*

_**One month later.** _

_Everywhere Sparky looked, her surroundings were tinged green. White burning pain swirled in her chest, why did everything hurt? The small automaton looked down, her hands were covered in thick black oil. At her feet the prone figures of her Walter family laid strewn on the dusty ground. No...She did this?_

_"Good job", a cold voice sneered from behind her. Sparky turns to see Thadeus Becile looking almost proud at her handiwork. "Amazing. Copper Elephants couldn't destroy them, but all it took was one small copper robot."_

Sparky jerks back online in her anti gravity chair in her room at the Manor. Her blue optics glow in the darkness of her bedroom as she looks around frantically. She lets out a distorted sound as she sparks painfully from her ears, gray coolant tears welled in her optics. 

The small automaton gets up and runs as quietly as she can down the corridors to The HOW, stopping in front of the thick metal doors and pulling her phone out of the pocket of her pajama bottoms. Blinking through the tears that clouded her vision she quickly pings a message.

_'I'm sorry it's late Spine I'm scared pleas let me in I'm sorry'_

Almost immediately the doors swish open and The Spine is standing in the doorway. He looked like he rushed to get back in chassis, his normally well kempt black hair was disheveled, concern written in his features as he looks at the shaking and crying robot in front of him.

"I'm sorry Sp-ine--" Sparky tries to whisper, her voice distorting at the last word and hissing like radio static before stopping altogether with a small pop.

She looks up at him, trying to express with her eyes the words she wanted to say to him and failing. Silent sobs wrack her body as she drops her gaze to the floor. She didn't want to be scared anymore nor did she want to bother anyone.

"No, no darlin', don't cry. It's alright, come here" The Spine soothes as he picks her up in a hug. He could feel the humming electrical current in her body frantically pulsing against his chassis as he held her close. 

The door to The HOW closes behind them as Spine carries her a little ways into the room and sits down in the large black armchair he would normally leave his chassis in when he wanted to lounge up in the wires. 

Once he sits down, Sparky curls up against his chest, her weight supported on his lap as his arms held her close. Since the Becile incident, Sparky had been unwillingly replaying her captivity and the fear she had of hurting her loved ones over and over again in her mind when she went into stand by.

The only thing Spine could do was comfort her the best he could and get her through it. Some nights were worse than others. Tonight's nightmare must've been horrible to make Sparky this distraught....

"Shh, you're safe. I promise you that" he murmurs and rubs her back as Sparky clung to him like a lifeline and hiccuped softly, tears staining his black undershirt. "Damn these nightmares. I would take them away if I could darlin', I'm so sorry."

Spine tried to keep his boiler working at an even pace, hoping the sound and feel of it would comfort Sparky. He vents steam as he looks at her. She had buried her face in the crook of his neck as she wept, holding on tight to him as if he was going to disappear. He was afraid she was going to expend all of her coolant if she kept this up. 

"Sparky, look at me", he says gently and brushes some red hair away from her face when she looks up at him with a sniffle. The coolant tears were starting to congeal slightly on her copper cheeks.

Sparky tries to say something but her voice remains uneven and distorted, she gives a staticy sigh of frustration as an apologetic expression crosses her features when she sees the stains her tears had left on his shirt.

"Don't be sorry. None of this is your fault", he tells her and wipes the tears on her face away gently with his thumb. Sparky leans her head on his shoulder when he's done, still shaking.

"I suppose we should get a Walter Worker up to fix your voice?" Spine ponders out loud. Sparky looks at him and shakes her head, removing an arm from holding on to him to tap on her other wrist.

"True, it is late but they've done late night repairs before. I'm sure they wouldn't mind?" 

Sparky shakes her head again, it could wait til the morning. At least she's calming down, Spine notes and exhales steam, but her eyes still held such a sad and exhausted gleam to them. Nothing like her usual joyful shine. It hurt him to see her like this. 

He must've made a worried expression, either that or Sparky was getting good at reading him, because the smaller automaton then placed a hand on his cheek and gave him a small smile when he looked back at her, as if to say 'It's okay'.

The Spine gives her a soft lopsided smile in return and rubs her back. They sit like this for a while, the silver automaton gently rubbing a hand up and down her back comfortingly and humming softly as she shakes and sniffles.

"Thank you, Spine." Sparky finally whispers, her voice wasn't fully back to normal, but it was still understandable.

"You're welcome, darlin'."

Sparky rests her head again on his shoulder, saying quietly after a moment, "I dont want to go back into stand by if he's going to be in my head."

The Spine sighed. He had seen many things over the years he tried hard to forget about, or move past. Wars mostly. He had years to work through any demons that plagued his stasis times. Poor Sparky only had weeks since the event.

"I understand why you don't want to. But you do need your rest, sweetheart."

"I know...but I don't feel safe. I'm scared I'll wake up back there, the Green Matter still in my system, with no control over myself." Sparky answers shakily and holds on a little tighter to him.

The Spine hugged her closer as he listened. "That will never happen again. I hate seeing you afraid," he murmured gently. "How can I make you feel safe again?"

Sparky felt the warm glow of his core as he hugged her, his boiler hummed comfortingly against her ear. The smaller robot could feel herself relax in his arms. She closes her eyes, taking in what she was feeling.

_Warm, loved, safe and protected. Spine would never let anything hurt her._

"You're already doing it. I feel safe when I'm with you, Spine."

A soft purr rumbled in his chest as he gently kissed her head. Soon Sparky was quietly drifting off into stand by. Her optics ease shut as she's lulled by the comforting sounds in his chest and the protection of his arms around her. His calm presence chased away any fear remaining from her nightmare.

The Spine didn't mind staying in his chair while she rested, he was glad to help. He smiles softly and carefully brushed a stray hair from her face. The copper bot makes a small, sleepy noise and nuzzles into his neck with a soft, content sigh before slipping deeper into her resting mode.

After a few moments, Spine could feel the calmed and content thrum of the copper bot's system almost sync up with the steady hum of his core. Satisfied that his darlin' was resting easy, the silver bot relaxes into the chair and soon goes into stasis. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for coming on this journey with me, everyone's comments and kudos were very much appreciated. I hope we can go on another adventure like this in the future!


End file.
